GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: Waynesboro sweeps Northern

Wednesday

Oct 10, 2012 at 10:30 AMOct 10, 2012 at 10:35 AM

Expect big things and big things might happen.It seems that’s the theme of the 2012 girls volleyball season in Waynesboro. And, so far, some really good things are happening for the Maidens under first-year coach Kim Saunders.

Lee Goodwin

WAYNESBORO — Expect big things and big things might happen.It seems that’s the theme of the 2012 girls volleyball season in Waynesboro. And, so far, some really good things are happening for the Maidens under first-year coach Kim Saunders.

On Tuesday night, Waynesboro avenged an earlier loss to Northern York by winning in straight sets in a Mid-Penn Capital Division match inside the Waynesboro Area Senior High School gym.

The Maidens outlasted the Polar Bears and won by scores of 25-23, 25-22 and 25-16. Northern beat Waynesboro 3-1 earlier in the season.

Not only did the Maidens win the match but forged a two-way tie with West Perry for third place in the division. Waynesboro improved to 8-6 overall and 7-5 in the league, while Northern slipped to 7-6 in the division.

The Maidens are currently 23rd in the most recent District III, Class AAA rankings, which include all matches through Saturday, Oct. 6. The top 20 teams qualify for the district tournament, which begins Oct. 25.

“At this point in the season, with goals still obtainable, you hope that your team responds accordingly,” Saunders said. “We did that. The ladies were completely focused on the match and our destiny.”

Destiny is certainly attainable, and Saunders will no doubt be reiterating the need for renewed determination as the season draws near to an end. Each succeeding match is critical in terms of postseason prospects.

Waynesboro hosts league-leading Greencastle-Antrim on Thursday. That match is followed by matches against West Perry, Boiling Springs and James Buchanan to close out the regular season.

The first game was neck in neck from start to finish and was highlighted by a big-time rally by the Maidens after trailing 17-11. Waynesboro called a time out with the score 16-11, and after giving up another point, the Maidens started to climb out of a hole by scoring nine of the next 12 points to tie the set at 20.

Along the way, Sierra Davies — who contributed with some clutch digs and was a force at the service line — served back to back aces to get Waynesboro to within 18-17. Davies was key to the team’s defense with 31 digs. She also had six aces in the match.

After a side out, the Maidens regained serve after a service error and scored the next two points. Zoe Harris, who had the hot hand at the net with a team-high 13 kills, tied the set with a rally-killer. After another side out, Waynesboro scored two straight points for a 22-20 lead before the Polar Bears tied it up.

Waynesboro was the beneficiary of a service error, and after Northern tied the set once again with a front-line kill, the Maidens closed out the game on back to back kills by Harris.

The first-set win provided Waynesboro with some needed momentum, and the Maidens picked up where they left off in the second set by winning another nailbiter.

Waynesboro rallied from a 20-15 deficit as Dori Kozain caught fire at the net and recorded four of her eight kills. The last of them gave the Maidens a 21-20 lead, and it was 24-20 before the Polar Bears pulled to within 24-22. Davies dug down deep for another one of her signature digs and Harris puncuated the set with another of her rapid-fire kills to give the Maidens a 2-0 lead in the match.

“We had great performances from Zoe, who swung with emphasis, and Dori, with timely power,” Saunders said. “Sierra was unbelievable in her relentless pursuit to get a touch on any ball coming her way. Some of the touches she had made the difference in transition to points for our team.”

Megan Biesecker was once again a model of dependability at the net as she had 26 set assists. Alyssa Taylor contributed 10 digs.

Waynesboro won the junior varsity match 25-17, 26-24. Rachel Johnson had five kills and Lynnae Stine had eight digs.

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